The Room of Requirement
by Phoenix Donovan
Summary: Pansy comes back to Hogwarts fifth year looking better than ever, but is Draco enough for her now? Fred Weasley takes a sudden interest, and both boys use the Room of Requirement to seduce the fair Slytherin. Who will win her heart? DracoPansy, FredPansy.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter One**

Pansy woke up from a sex-cradled dream to the deafening shrill of an alarm clock; her mood immediately dimmed.

"Bother," she muttered, slamming the clock to silence and rolling back over in bed. She wrapped herself up in the covers and sighed, reminiscing on the wonderful night visions she had just encountered: she was in a dungeon, her arms tied up with chains at her wrists, and her legs spread and tied to strange wooden stakes. She was naked, and a tall beautiful blonde stood above her, long blonde hair falling down his shoulders, piercing gray eyes and a smug smile curling at the corners of his lips…

She growled and kicked the covers away. As sexy as it was, she could not help feeling a bit weird about dreaming of Lucius Malfoy. She _was_ dating Draco, after all. Pansy sat up straight and stretched, placing her arms above her heads and bending her elbows behind her back—a routine that always woke her up. There was a knock on the door.

"Pansy?" her mother said through the wooden frame. "Are you awake?"

"Yes, mother," Pansy snapped. She turned on the light and tore off her green t-shirt and panties, throwing the dirty clothes into a pile on the floor for the house elves to take to the laundry later, and putting on a clean pair of panties and a bra. As she dug through her closet to find a green and black plaid skirt and matching green vest, Pansy couldn't help but steal a look at herself in the mirror, and for the first time, she noticed how different she looked. Last year, during Pansy's fourth year at Hogwarts, she had had short black hair and had been very pale. Furthermore, a lot of the boys liked to tell her that she looked like a stick, since she was so skinny and not very tall. In fact, the only boy that had ever taken an interest in her was Draco, which came as great a surprise to her as to anyone else. She guessed it was because they were both purebloods and they were both in Slytherin, but Draco had never made fun of her body and had never showed any sign of wanting to date anyone but her. She smiled at the thought of him—she had not gotten to see Draco since the middle of July, when she spent the yearly three weeks at the Malfoy Manor with her mother and father. That was always Pansy's favorite time of the summer—it meant what felt like endless time with Draco, late nights drinking firewhiskey with Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle (who also liked to make their summer visits), and of course, skinny dipping in the Malfoy Lake in the middle of the night when the moon was shining just right on the water…

Now, Pansy noticed that her hair had grown to just below her shoulders and had a slight curl because of the length, different than her usual stick-straight look, and her skin glowed with the sun exposure she had gotten from playing outside this summer at All Girls Quidditch Camp (her mother made her go and she had no intention of ever trying out). She had also grown into herself a little—she had just turned fifteen last spring, and her breasts were a little too big for her bra, her hips curving nicely to shape her plum-colored undergarments. Pansy smiled at herself and pulled on her clothes. After brushing her hair and applying mascara to her already thick lashes and a dark rose shade to her lips, she pranced downstairs to the kitchen where her mother and father were eating breakfast and waiting for her.

"Excited about your fifth year?" her mother asked, smiling at her only daughter.

"Jubilant," Pansy said, grabbing an apple and taking a bite.

"We need to leave soon," her father said, grabbing Pansy's things and shoving them in her arms, causing her to drop her apple and hold onto her books begrudgingly.

"Here, put them in this knapsack Grandpappy sent you…" her mother suggested, taking Pansy's books and placing them in the knapsack herself. Pansy shrugged and pranced upstairs to brush her teeth. She didn't especially like having to go back to Hogwarts, but at least she would get to see Draco.

A limo came to pick up Pansy and her parents as usual and they were off to catch the Hogwarts Express. A servant carried Pansy's suitcases for her as the family trudged across the train station. When no muggles were looking, Pansy ran through the wall that lead to Platform Nine and Three Quarters and was immediately greeted by the busy noise of her fellow Wizards and Witches. Pansy breathed a sigh of relief—being in the presence of muggles always made her feel a bit nauseated.

"Pansy!" a shrill voice called from across the platform. She turned toward the sound and was greeted by a tall, blonde Millicent Bulstrode, Pansy's fellow Slytherin and dorm mate.

"Pansy, you look really good!" Millicent said, but her eyes had a hint of green in them. Pansy raised her eyebrows at her and cleared her throat, forcing a smile.

"Thanks, Millicent," she said, although she didn't quite understand her friend's words. Millicent never offered compliments, and this one had a strange ring to it, like she was a bit surprised at the way Pansy looked. But why did Millicent care what Pansy looked like? Millicent had always been the object of most Slytherin boys' desires, and she had also noticed a few boys from the other houses looking at her, whether they liked to admit it or not.

"The train is about to leave!" Pansy's mother said, turning Pansy around and kissing her on the forehead.

"Bye mum, bye dad," she said, giving her father a quick hug before running off with her friend. She boarded the train and followed Millicent to an empty compartment, placing her things in the overhead storage area.

"Come on Crabbe, Goyle, I think there's an empty compartment up here," Pansy heard a familiar voice say, her heart jumping at the sound. Just as she expected, a second later a tall boy with slicked back blonde hair and gray eyes entered the compartment.

"Oh, hello Pansy, Millicent," Draco said, entering and placing his things overhead with Pansy's, their suitcases touching. He sat down next to Pansy and his arm touched hers, the warm strength of it coursing through her veins. Draco turned and looked at Pansy thoughtfully, his face only inches away from hers.

"Hm," he said. "You look different. Have you done something to your hair?"

Pansy twirled a dark strand in her finger and shrugged. Draco reached out and laced his fingers through her hair.

"I like it," he said definitely, then turned back to the others and started conversing again. Pansy stole a look at Millicent, who sat across from her glaring at her. When Millicent caught Pansy's eye, she blushed and looked out the window, but the stony expression on her face didn't change. After about half an hour, Draco stood up.

"Well, I guess it's time for me to be making my rounds. See what the bloody Gryffindors are doing. Probably on a brand new fucking mission by now," he said, scowling.

"Rounds?" Pansy asked, looking up at her boyfriend.

"I've been made prefect, remember?" he asked, looking back down at her. "I told you so in my last letter."

Pansy crossed her arms. "That was ages ago."

"Well you were at Quidditch Camp or whatever the bother it was. Honestly Pan, does your mother really think you've got what it takes to play Quidditch?" He laughed and sauntered off, leaving Pansy there to sulk. She even saw Millicent's face brighten up a little.

"I could play if I wanted to," Pansy scowled.

"Sure you could, dear," Millicent said, and she buried her face in a magazine, obviously bored now that Draco was gone. These little routines of Millicent's never went unnoticed. It had been obvious from day one that Millicent had a thing for Draco, as most of the Slytherin girls did, but for whatever reason, Draco liked Pansy, and even though Millicent had been known to throw herself at Draco, he simply was not interested.

The rest of the trip was uneventful, with Draco spending most of his time outside the cabin torturing first years and Gryffindors, and Pansy stuck with Millicent's constant hair flipping that was getting the ogled attention of Crabbe and Goyle. It was dark outside by the time Draco came back in and grabbed his trunks, pulling down Pansy's too for her.

"We'll be at Hogwarts soon," he said. "Might as well put on your robes."

Pansy obeyed and pulled her green and silver robes on over her outfit. She could make out the dark outline of the castle, something only those of magic blood could see. Pansy snorted; shame that privilege wasn't reserved for purebloods, only. But she sighed at her wish, something she strongly agreed with Draco upon, and waited for the train to come to a stop and the commotion to resume. She stood behind Draco, who shoved past everyone else and got them off the train quickly. A head of dark shaggy hair and scarlet robes caught Pansy's eye and she grabbed Draco's arm.

"Hey look Draco, it's your best mate," she said. Draco looked in the direction of Pansy's gaze and sneered, walking along and shoving past others to get to Harry Potter. He stopped in front of the four-eyed annoyance and put on his best bully face.

"I'd watch out this year if I were you, Potter," Draco spat. "I've been made prefect."

"Well so have I," Hermione spoke up, stepping up beside Harry. "So just back off Malfoy."

"I wasn't talking to you," Draco said, scowling at Hermione, who Pansy knew Draco couldn't stand to be in the presence of. "You dirty-blooded little tramp."

Harry and Ron drew their wands just as Hagrid walked up between the group, his twelve-foot body causing Pansy to step back or else her foot be crushed.

"Stop causing trouble, Malfoy," the half-giant said. Malfoy sneered up at Hagrid, shot a look at the Gryffindors, and trudged away, taking Pansy's hand and pulling her along.

"Don't let them bother you," Pansy said.

"Stupid Potter," he said. "Always in the damn way of things."

"But you're a prefect this year and he's not," Pansy reassured. "That has to stand for something."

They boarded the flying carriage with Crabbe and Goyle (Millicent had chosen to ride with a few other boys) and Draco snuck a small flask of firewhiskey out of his robes pocket.

"Here's to another year at Hogwarts," he said grimly, and took a long swig before passing it to Pansy.

---

After having dinner in the Great Hall and waiting for the new first years to be sorted, Pansy couldn't wait to just go to her dormitories and settle in. It was eight o'clock by the time she had made it upstairs, pulled on a white shirt and pajama pants, and headed back downstairs to hang out with the others. As she walked downstairs to the Common Room, she noticed that a few boys were staring at her. She put forth her best efforts to ignore them and walked over to Draco, a few younger girls turning their noses up at her when the blonde Slytherin greeted Pansy and let her snuggle up beside him in the green overstuffed chair.

"Have you done something different, Pansy?" Blaise asked, studying Pansy in the same manner that the other boys had. Pansy shrugged. She noticed Blaise looking down at her chest, and she admitted to herself that her shirt did fit a bit snuggly, and her pants were a little low and revealed a bit of her newly tanned and toned stomach.

"Well, you look really good," Blaise finished. Pansy didn't even need to look at Millicent to know that she was fuming, but she did anyway, and yes, Millicent did indeed look confused and angry. Pansy smiled and kissed Draco lightly on the neck, knowing it would drive Millicent even crazier, but Draco shrugged her away and stood up.

"I'm going to go patrolling the hallways," he said, and he stood up and was gone. Pansy frowned and sank back into the chair, closing her eyes. She felt a warm body sit on the arm of the chair beside her and she snuck a peek upward.

"He's always running away from you," Millicent said, leaning down and petting Pansy's head. Pansy jerked away angrily and stood up.

"I'm going upstairs."

"Already?" Blaise said, standing up beside her.

"Yes," Pansy spat at him. "Already. You have Millicent here to keep you company."

"Okay, Pansy," Blaise said, raising a dark eyebrow, his emerald eyes flashing. "But it's your company I think I'd really enjoy." He whispered the last bit, as not to hurt Millicent's feelings, but Pansy shrugged it off and sulked up the stairs to her dormitory. It wasn't Blaise's compliments or pining she wanted. She wanted Draco, and she knew that the only reason she wanted him was because he kept it that way; always running off, or kissing her at random times and only when _he_ wanted, or sometimes skipping class to do God-knows-what, leaving Pansy entirely in the dark on all occasions. But that was Draco, she thought, sighing. And that was the boy she fell in love with during first year. As Pansy crawled into bed, turning off the light and snuggling under the covers, she had one inkling thought playing in her mind as it wandered into the unconscious:

If she could change anything about Draco, would she?

---

"Move it, out of the way!"

"Seventh years coming through!"

"Unless you want to buy a Coughing Couldron—"

"—or a pair of Nibbling Knickers—"

"—Then I suggest you—"

"—MOVE!"

A dozen or second years who looked either incredibly frightened or absolutely amazed gazed up at the Weasley twins and busied away, making room for their tall, lanky bodies to shove through the crowd of minglers in the Great Hall. Fred nudged his brother when he saw Harry and the others and the two of them sauntered over to the Gryffindor table, sitting down on either side of Hermione.

"Care to buy something, Hermione?" Fred asked, grinning at her troubled expression. She pouted and shoved her nose in her Arithmancy book.

"Please, Fred. I'm just trying to pretend that I didn't just see you two harassing that entire lot over there," Hermione huffed.

George put an arm around the stern prefect. "Ah Hermione, if we don't harass them now, they'll never learn!"

"How do you think we became such fine gentlemen!"

"You're lucky I don't take all of your little toys," Hermione said, shrugging George off. The twins laughed.

"And let us miss out on a fantastic sale?" Fred asked, batting his long eyelashes at Hermione. She sighed exasperatedly and turned away, only to face the same puppy dog look on George's face.

"You two are impossible," Hermione said, and she stood up, grabbing her things.

"Where are you going?" Ron asked, looking up from his plate of food all of a sudden, which he had been entirely engrossed in during the first part of the conversation.

"I'm going to sit with Luna," Hermione said defiantly.

"Ugh, don't sit with the Ravenclaws, we have our first match against them in a couple of weeks," Harry complained, scratching the back of his head and taking a piece of bacon off Hermione's plate.

"Yeah, you're conversing with the enemy!" Ron said.

"Oh, like I haven't heard that one before," Hermione said, and she shot the twins reproachful looks before stalking over to the Ravenclaw table.

"Stupid Krum…" Ron mumbled into his plate, taking another bite of his toast coated with horserat jam.

"What was that Ron?" Fred asked, grinning. George pulled out a green vile and dangled it in front of his younger brother.

"Love sick are we?"

"We can fix that!"

"Free of charge."

"If you're our guinea pig."

"Sometimes I think Hermione's right about you two," Ron sneered.

"Oh, she's entirely correct."

"We _are_ impossible."

All of a sudden, Harry's eyes widened and he dropped his fork.

"No fucking way," Harry said. Everyone sitting around, even the twins, stopped eating to look at Harry. He was staring past the ginger hair of Fred Weasley to a spot across the room.

"What is it mate?" Fred asked, but Harry just shook his head.

"See for yourself."

Fred and George turned around simultaneously to look in the direction of Harry's former gaze, and Fred's eyes fell upon a beautiful brunette with sparkling violet eyes and red lips.

"Who's _that_?" George asked, raising his eyebrows and grinning in approval.

"Blimey, is that Pansy!" Ron said, nearly choking on his food, coughing hysterically, his eyes turning red and watery. Harry patted him on the back and nodded.

"Pansy…Pansy…" Fred said, taking one last look at the girl and turning back to face the others. "That name sounds a little familiar."

"She's Malfoy's girlfriend," Harry said bitterly.

"No, that's _not_ Malfoy's girlfriend," George said, snorting. "Malfoy's girlfriend is that skinny little pale thing."

"Correction. She _was_ that skinny little pale thing," Harry said.

Fred turned around and saw Pansy sit down at a table of ogling Slytherins—it seemed that none of them could take their eyes off Pansy either—everyone except Draco, who merely said hello to his girlfriend and went back to a heated conversation with Goyle.

"Damn," Fred said, watching Pansy take a sip of her drink. "Milk _does_ do the body good."

"I'll say," George replied. As if she heard them, the Slytherin girl turned to look over at the Gryffindor table. Fred winked at her, and she scowled and turned away, but not before giving him a double take and putting a slim arm around Draco's waist.

"Don't even think about it," Ron said to the twins.

"What?" Fred asked innocently.

"She's out of your league."

Fred laughed. "I've yet to find someone who is out of my league, not even a Slytherin."

"Pansy Parkinson is," Harry agreed. "Besides, she's fucking in love with that prat."

"I assume you're referring to Malfoy," Fred said, rolling his eyes. "Listen, I never even said I wanted her."

"Oh, you don't have to say it," Ron said.

"Yeah, and neither does the rest of Hogwarts, apparently," said Harry. Fred shrugged, grabbed an apple, and stood up with his brother.

"Well, it's been fun," he said.

"We're off to do more business," George said.

"Or perhaps just to bother Granger."

"But we'll be doing that either way, whether it becomes our main goal or not."

"See you gits later."

Fred couldn't help casting another look at Pansy as he exited the Great Hall, and as he did so, he noticed that she had her head lowered, her arms crossed, her dark hair tucked behind her ears to reveal a morose expression on her face. Dating Draco or not, she didn't look happy, Fred thought, and he let that be his final one about her as he and his brother left the dining hall.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Two**

"What the hell is this?"

"What the hell is what?"

"_This_."

Draco slammed down a piece of parchment in front of Pansy and she glanced up from her book at the message written on the parchment: _Hey baby, top o' the mornin' to ya! Meet me in Myrtle's Bathroom tonight at 9:30_. She rolled her eyes.

"Seamus Finnegan gave that to me," she said, and went back to her book. The text was grabbed out of her hands and tossed to the floor, along with the torn-up parchment. Pansy just sighed exasperatedly at the sight of her heated boyfriend pacing across the Slytherin Common Room.

"You need to start wearing bigger clothes," Draco said, who stopped pacing and stood in front of Pansy, staring down at her gravely.

"I wear a robe! How much bigger can you get?" Pansy retorted, flicking her wand at her book and whispering "accio." It floated over to her and she caught it in her palms, opening it up again and skimming for the page that Draco so rudely interrupted.

"Well, wear less make-up," he said.

"Fine."

Draco sighed and sat down on an opposite couch, taking a swig of firewhiskey. Pansy couldn't help smirking a bit behind her book. Draco actually seems jealous, she thought. Finally, a bit of attention. Too bad it wasn't exactly the positive attention she wanted. Pansy groaned and closed her book. She had a Transfiguration test tomorrow in which she had to turn a chair into a litter of kittens, plus a paper due on the mating ritual of homosexual trolls, but she couldn't concentrate on any of that right now, not with Draco sulking about some idiot boys taking an interest in her, boys whom she didn't even consider attractive. Seamus? Please, Pansy had higher standards than that.

"I'm going for a walk," she announced. Draco stood up straighter.

"What? It's nine. You're not allowed to wander the corridors this late," he snarled.

"What are you going to do? Report me to Snape?" Pansy snorted. She put her things on the coffee table and walked past Draco, ignoring the incredulous look he was giving her and hastily swinging open the door that lead to the hallway. A chill swept past her and she wrapped her arms around herself, cursing that she should have worn a sweater. She didn't know where she was walking, and Draco was right—she shouldn't be out this late, it was against the rules. Pansy smirked. Draco didn't care about the rules, he just didn't want Pansy to leave him while he was on a rampage.

As Pansy walked by a suit of armor, the dark halls only illuminated by the light of the mounted candles, she heard faint footsteps approaching and froze. A moment later, she heard voices and ducked into the nearest bathroom.

"I knew you'd come," said a voice from behind her. Pansy yelped and spun around, taking out her wand—it was Seamus Finnegan, and she suddenly realized that she was in the abandoned bathroom of Moaning Myrtle.

"Ugh, get off it," Pansy groaned, flipping her hair back over her shoulder and turning to lean her ear against the bathroom door. She strained to hear through the door to see if she could hear if anyone was coming, but it was hard to hear with Seamus right behind her, babbling on about "no one will come in" and "I'll be gentle with you if it's your first time"…

"Shhh! Shut _up_," Pansy snapped. Seamus just closed his mouth and smiled, leaning up beside Pansy. She ignored him and slapped away the hand that felt for her thigh. When she didn't hear anything after a few minutes, she opened the door to leave, but Seamus put his hand against it to stop her from opening it. She glared at him and he raised his eyebrows at her, still smiling.

"Excuse me," she said.

"Have somewhere to go?"

Pansy drew her wand and pointed it at Seamus's throat.

"If I don't hex your fucking brains out, Draco will," she said, never lowering her gaze or her wand. Seamus took his hand off the door and crossed his arms.

"Fine. You're probably just a fucking tease anyway."

"Yeah, that's it," Pansy growled, hurrying out of the bathroom and briskly heading in the opposite direction of the Slytherin Common Room. Not a smart idea, she thought. But she wanted to get away from Seamus and she didn't feel like talking to Draco quite yet. She was stomping loudly, arms crossed, her eyes lowered—that's why she didn't hear the pair of footsteps approaching, the low slightly jubilant voices, see the ginger hair…

"Excuse us," George Weasley said, causing Pansy to jump back and look up at him. He smiled down at her and shot a look at his twin brother, who was staring down at Pansy with wide blue eyes. Fred cleared his throat and grinned.

"Pansy, is it?" Fred asked.

Pansy snorted. "Sorry. I don't talk to Weasleys." But she didn't make a move to leave, only crossed her arms. Fred grinned.

"Neither do we, usually," Fred said.

"Or at least some of them."

"We try to avoid them as much as possible, actually."

Pansy rolled her eyes and went to move past Fred, and he crossed his arms, grinning down at her. Without really knowing why, Pansy stopped and stared up into his face—innocent, boyish, but a mischievous glint in his ocean-tinted irises.

"We usually don't talk to Slytherins, either," George said, interrupting their gaze. "So come on, George, let's leave this lovely lady alone."

"To wander the dark corridors all by herself."

"Hope Peeves doesn't find her."

"I'll say."

"Bye then, Pansy."

Fred and George turned to walk away, grinning at each other.

"Wait," Pansy said. "What were you two doing so close to the dungeon anyway?"

They stopped and turned back to face Pansy.

"Collecting Finnegan," George said.

"He's up to no good, even by our standards," added Fred.

"Something about a date in Myrtle's bathroom."

"Oh, don't worry about that," Pansy said quickly, walking toward them. She listened to her boots clink on the hard floor, knowing that the twins were staring at her.

"Care for us to escort you?" Fred asked.

"Not in the slightest."

She heard them laugh as they turned around and walked in the opposite direction, back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

---

"She's not as pretty up close as I thought she was," George said to his brother when they got back to the Common Room. They had given up on trying to find Seamus after half an hour of searching, and besides, they had only done it because Hermione had promised Fred a little something special if he did—George didn't know about that part, though.

"I dunno," Fred shrugged, settling down into an armchair. A huffy Hermione came sauntering over to them, staring down at Fred especially.

"So I'm guessing you didn't find Seamus," she said.

"That would be a negative."

"This is horrible," Hermione sighed, lowering her voice to a whisper. "You know he has a…problem."

"He's just horny," George said. Hermione grunted and tossed a glance at Fred, who gave her a small smile and winked. Seamus wasn't the only one, and Hermione looked very tempting tonight, her hair in pretty brown waves around her face and her cheeks tinted with a rose blush.

"You two can tend to him then when he comes back," she said, turning to walk away. Fred waited until his brother wasn't looking to stand up and follow her. When they got to a quiet corner, he touched her hair, causing her to turn around and look up into the feral grin on his face.

"A deal's a deal, Fred," she said.

Fred groaned. "Don't tease me Granger." And he bent down to brush his lips against her neck—the spot he knew she couldn't resist. But to his surprise, she moved away and smiled meanly up at him.

"I'm not. You didn't find Seamus, so no goodies for you."

"You're so cruel."

"You'll live."

To tell the truth though, Fred had been looking forward to getting with Hermione—not that he didn't always look forward to it, but the last time they had gotten together had been about a month ago, and their time had been cut short because they heard a teacher coming (they were fucking on the desk of an abandoned classroom), and not all of Fred's needs were satisfied. But he stopped himself from begging Hermione—that was one thing a Weasley twin would never do.

"I'll see you later, Fred," Hermione said, grinning up at him devilishly before walking off with Ginny and up the girls' dormitories. Fred grimaced and sat back down, arms crossed. Hermione was fun to fuck around with, but sometimes she got on his nerves. She _was_ Hermione, after all. There was only so much of her he could take. He felt his mind drifting away from Hermione and falling on a certain violet-eyed beauty. He shook his head of the image of Pansy, but it was harder than he expected—he had to admit that something about her struck him. It wasn't just her beauty, it was something…something…

Fred couldn't quite place it. Either way, he felt very strange and self-conscious sitting in a public area dreamily drifting off about Malfoy's girlfriend, so he stood up and paced, trying to think of something to get his mind off Pansy. He sighed. Normally he would go to Hermione for a little shag at a time like this, but she had made it very clear that _that_ was out of the question, at least for tonight. He gazed around the room, looking for a prospect. Fred knew he didn't need Hermione. Just as he was searching, he felt a light tap on his shoulder and turned around, staring into the smiling face of a very blonde, very shaggable Katie Bell.

"Hello Fred, how are you?" she asked.

"Never been better."

"Listen…have you done that paper for Umbridge yet? The one about…oh, what was it…"

"I can't remember, that bitch should die, and no, I haven't done it. But…we can do it together," Fred said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully and grinning down at her. Katie shrugged.

"Better than doing it alone, I guess. It's loud down here; come on, we can go upstairs to your dorm."

Fred watched Katie walk away and his grin grew wider. All thoughts of Pansy erased, he followed Katie Bell upstairs to his room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Three**

The next couple of weeks were boring for Pansy—Hogwarts was Hogwarts, Draco was Draco, and Quidditch was becoming a royal pain in her (quite lovely) ass. It was even worse this year than ever because of the way her fellow Slytherins, especially Millicent, were teasing her about Quidditch Camp.

"Oh come on Pansy, you're not going to try out?" Millicent would say, flipping her golden hair over her shoulder and cleaning her broomstick daintily, which caught the attention of a few boys who couldn't resist watching the pretty girl stroke something—she ignored them, as usual.

"Get off it, Millicent," Pansy would say, going back to whichever textbook she was studying.

"Quidditch Camp?" Goyle asked. "Are you any good, then?"

"Ha!" Millicent chirped.

Pansy shot her a look. "How do you know I'm not, Millicent? You've never even seen me play!"

"Please, darling. Let's not go fooling ourselves."

"Hmph."

"Hey Pansy."

Pansy turned around at the sound of Draco's voice and a few younger Slytherins turning around too, ogling at the tall blonde strutting into the common room and grabbing Pansy by the arm.

"Come on," he said, pulling her up with one hand. Millicent glared at them as Pansy obeyed, standing up and pulling her arm back.

"Where?"

"You'll see."

He opened the door for her and lead her outside. As he lead her down the usual hallways, he would glance here and there, walking quickly and swiftly, shushing Pansy if she made the slightest sound. She thought he was behaving quite oddly seeing how it was only five o'clock on a Saturday afternoon. But she just rolled her eyes and walked more softly, which was hard to do since she was wearing boots.

"Here," Draco announced, stopping in front of a blank wall.

"Uh…"

Draco turned to her and raised his eyebrows. "Potter's not the only one who knows how to have a little fun."

"Well, obviously, Draco. But what on earth are you talking about?"

Draco paced back and forth in front of the wall, eyes closed, his lips moving slightly and his brow furrowed in concentration.

"Draco, what—"

"Sh! Now I have to start all over again! Just be quiet."

Pansy pursed her lips in annoyance and waited for Draco to finish whatever he was doing. In a few moments, he stopped and turned to the blank wall, and Pansy gasped as she saw that it was no longer a blank wall, but a wall with a door that Draco could easily open.

"What the hell?" Pansy said upon entering. Draco closed the door and locked it behind them.

"Potter's been using this room for weeks," Draco said. "I've been following him here."

The room was dimly lit and not very big, with only a small candle-lit table and a green bed. Pansy raised her eyebrows.

"What do you think he's using it for?"

"Well, I'm not sure yet, but I know that he's using it for something he needs."

"What?"

"I overheard him talking to that dirty whore, Granger," Draco spat. "He said that he just had to close his eyes, think about what he needed the room to be, and then a door would appear and whatever he needed would be inside the room."

"Draco, you should tell Umbridge," Pansy said, crossing her arms.

"I will, but if I do she might disable the room or something, and I want to have my own bit of fun first," he said, turning to her, his eyes twinkling. Pansy took a deep breath, not sure what Draco was up to—not until she again noticed the candle-lit dinner, and the bed…

"You're a silly boy, Draco," Pansy said, sitting in one of the chairs and crossing her arms, but she couldn't help but smile.

"It's your favorite, Pansy," Draco said, lifting the hot lid off the plate to reveal steak smothered in horserat jam and cherry pie for dessert. He cut a piece of steak for Pansy and set it on her plate, winking at her as he got some for himself. He sat down and lifted his glass to toast her. Pansy stared warily into her goblet.

"Um, this isn't firewhiskey, is it Draco?" Pansy asked. Draco shook his head.

"Just butterbeer," he said. Wow, Pansy thought. How's that for a change.

Pansy toasted Draco and took a sip, Draco staring at her the entire time.

"Did you put something in it?" she asked.

"What?"

"I don't know," Pansy said, lowering her head.

"What's the matter, Pansy?" he asked.

Pansy looked around the room—at the intimidating bed, at the congenial expressions of Draco.

"You're not acting like yourself."

Draco opened his mouth to speak, then pursed his lips.

"I can't do something nice for you?" His voice was sharp again, as usual, and even though his tone was threatening, Pansy felt more at home with it than his good manners.

"You can if you want, but you just never do," she spat, sitting back in her chair and crossing her arms.

"I think I will then. Eat your fucking steak."

"Fine, I will."

She took a bite.

"It's really good, who made it?"

"_I_ did," Draco snarled, stabbing his meat and shoving it in his mouth, his strong jaw looking rather chiseled as he chewed.

After Pansy ate her steak, she lifted her fork to try the pie, which Draco also made, but he stopped her by lifting his own fork and feeding her a piece.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"Of course I do."

Draco and Pansy sat staring at each other for a moment—it was strange, being along with Draco. He wasn't a person whom many got to be alone with. But Pansy had always had that privilege.

"Why is there a bed here, Draco?" Pansy asked. Draco shrugged.

"I just told the room that I needed a romantic place to take you," he said. Or he told the room that he needed a way to get me in the sack, Pansy thought. That would be much more like Draco. Except…

Well, many people at Hogwarts wouldn't believe this, but Pansy and Draco were virgins. Well, at least Pansy knew _she_ was. She assumed Draco was one too because he had been dating her and only her for four years and they had never done what everyone thought they did. Draco had never really asked her, and Pansy had never thought about it. She was only fifteen, after all.

"Do you…"

"What?" Draco asked, looking up at her. His eyes were a pale gray now, and he looked a little shy, his arms folded in front of him and his mouth twitching.

"Do you want to, um…"

"Sit down?"

"We're already sitting down."

"Over…there?" Draco said, nodding toward the bed. Pansy hesitated, but Draco stood up and took her by the hand, kissing her when she stood.

"Oh, thanks," Pansy said, surprised by the kiss.

"Don't mention it."

Draco sat on the bed, pulling Pansy down beside him, and kissed her again. Pansy's heart was beating rapidly and she could feel her palms grow cold and clammy. When Draco put a hand on her leg, she backed away, trying not to look him in the eye. He leaned down, kissing her again, but when he tried to put a hand up her shirt Pansy yelped and broke away.

"Jesus Christ Pansy, calm down," Draco said. "It's not like we've never fooled around before."

"But this is different!"

"Why?" Draco asked, looking down at her quizzically.

"Because of what we're going to do!"

Draco just stared at her for a moment, then he chuckled.

"And what are we going to do, Pansy?"

Pansy bit her lip.

"I'm sorry, I guess I just didn't know what to think. I mean, there's a bed here and all, and you're being so nice to me…"

"Did you want to have sex?" Draco asked.

"What! No!"

"But that's what you were thinking, wasn't it?"

Pansy looked up into his face, and he leaned down and put his mouth against her ear, his long eyelashes brushing her cheek.

"Was it what you were thinking?" he whispered. "Do you want to?"

"Do _you_ want to?" Pansy asked defensively.

"Why do you have to sound so mad about it?"

"Because it's a big deal!"

Draco ran a hand through Pansy's hair, studying her face.

"It's just me, Pansy," he said. "It's just me, Draco."

"I know," she sighed.

"Then why are you being so jumpy?" he asked. "Why are you acting afraid of me?"

Pansy shook her head.

"I don't know."

"That's not why I brought you here, Pansy," he said.

"You didn't think about it?"

"Well, of course I think about it, but…it wasn't my intention tonight."

"Then I don't want to know what your intentions were," Pansy snapped. Draco chuckled.

"You're such a bitch, Pansy," he said, biting her neck.

"So you think about it?"

"Yes, I do."

"So do I."

They were both silent and still, before Pansy rested a hand on Draco's shirt and, closing her eyes, let her fingers rest underneath it, the heat of his skin coursing through her.

"Do you…would you like to, Draco?" she asked, biting her lip.

"Would you?"

"I asked you first!"

He took her head in both hands and enveloped her in a warm kiss.

"Yes, I think so," he said. "And now it's your turn to answer."

Pansy kissed him back, and trailed her lips along his face.

"Yes, I think so, too."

---

"Fred!"

George nudged Fred in the ribs.

"Your girlfriend is coming," he said, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a laugh. Fred rolled his eyes and turned to greet Katie Bell, who had claimed him as her boyfriend as soon as they had shagged. Since they were both Gryffindors, and they basically lived together, Fred had no intention of disturbing the harmony by saying no—besides, she had been too quick for him, and he had no idea she was a virgin!

She kissed him on the cheek and handed him a package.

"What's this?" he asked, sitting down at the Gryffindor table in the great hall. The package was large and hard, and he tore open the paper to look down at a giant framed picture of he and Katie that one of her friends had taken down at the lake two weeks ago. Fred tried to hide his disgust, and his photographed self rolled his eyes at the clingy blonde in the photo beside him.

"Do you like it?" Katie asked.

"Of course I do. Where should I put it?"

"Right over your bed!" Katie scoffed, frowning and grabbing the picture. "I'll go do it right now, just in case you forget!"

Katie ruffled his hair and trotted off with the picture, a few people laughing and pointing as she passed, then turning to Fred and making kissing noises. Fred buried his head in his hands and groaned.

"Well, what did you expect?" Hermione asked. Fred glared up at her and she smiled at him mischievously. That's what he got for leaving a good thing, he thought, wishing that he still had Hermione as a shagging partner. She was as surprised as anyone to hear that he was dating Katie; Fred was not one for monogamy, and he did as much as he could to do his own thing and avoid Katie—however, it was hard, and he had been unsuccessful enough for Katie to not even notice that that was what he was doing.

Fred stood up.

"Where are you going?" George asked, a laugh still playing behind his words.

"Out," Fred said.

"Out where?" Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You haven't even eaten," Ron said, stuffing his face with pie.

"I'm not really hungry," Fred mumbled, and without another word he turned away and walked down the Great Hall. As he passed the Slytherin table, he got a few cat calls regarding the Quidditch team, but he just put his hands in his pockets and grinned.

"Are you a Beater in bed with Katie, then?" Millicent called. Fred turned to Millicent.

"You _do_ realize that we beat you every time we play you, right?" Fred asked. Millicent just glared at him.

What is it with Slytherins, Fred thought. All talk and no action. He felt a bump at his side and looked down.

"Sorry," Pansy mumbled. He stared down at her. She must have been sitting in front of him and stood up from her seat without realizing he was still standing there.

"It's fine," Fred managed, and backed away so Pansy could stand up.

"I'll be right back," Pansy told Draco, who nodded without giving her so much as a look and carried straight on with his conversation.

Fred noticed a roll of Pansy's eyes as she set off across the Great Hall, and Fred spent no more time having a row with the Slytherins, leaving the building and heading down toward the lake. He sat down by the water, watching the merpeople shimmering in the morning sun as they leaped into the air and splashed back into the water.

He took a small flask out of his pocket and took a swig of the sweet alcohol. He usually didn't drink in the morning, but this morning, he deserved a break.

"Did you follow me?" he heard someone say. Fred turned around, shoving the alcohol back into his pocket, and looked up at Pansy.

"Don't flatter yourself," he said.

"I don't," she spat. She had a girl's voice, but there was something hard about it, like something mean was trying to get out of her. He looked at her boots, at her smooth legs.

"Why aren't you eating?" he found himself asking.

"Why aren't you?"

"You can't ask a question with a question."

"I can if I fucking want to."

Fred smirked. "Such dirty language."

Pansy sighed and crossed her arms and Fred looked up at her. She wore a frown, her pretty face tight at the mouth. He took out his flask and handed it to Pansy.

"Care for a drink?" he asked.

She stared down at it.

"You drink?" he asked, taking a small sip.

She shrugged.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"I don't want any."

"Ah, now there's the beauty in it," Fred said. "You never want any, but you might need some. And _you_ look like you need some."

Pansy stared down at Fred for a moment before snatching the flask out of his hand and downing it.

"That's a girl," Fred said. Pansy threw the empty flask on his lap and sat down on the ground beside him.

They sat in silence together, staring out at the water. Fred didn't want to speak, and he liked that she made no attempt to, as most girls babbled on and on and acted as if they had the entire world in their mouths. Perhaps Pansy did, but she made no sign of wanting to share it with him. The thought made him smile, and he listened to her breath, watching her chest move up and down from out of the corner of his eye. He disagreed with George—Pansy was very pretty up close, her skin clear, her eyes bright, her lips full and red with lipstick. A lot of girls tried to play this game, too. If they weren't loud and obnoxious, they were silent and coy. Except, Fred was almost convinced that Pansy wasn't playing any games, and perhaps this was because she wasn't interested in him, which came as both a relief and a disappointment.

"I have to go," Pansy said suddenly, standing up and smoothing her skirt. "Thanks for the whiskey."

"Any time," Fred said, standing up beside her. He grinned at her and she looked away.

"I hope no one saw me talking to a Gryffindor," Pansy snapped as she walked away, but Fred only laughed.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. And I also won't tell anyone that you're not a very good Slytherin."

"What?" she asked, turning around.

Fred shrugged. "You're just not very mean."

Pansy laughed wickedly. "Oh just trust me, I am."

**Author's Note:** Sorry, this chapter had a lot of mistakes when I first submitted it, I'm really bad at that kind of thing. So anyway, I hope you enjoy!

--Phoenix D.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Four**

Pansy stared down at the piece of parchment in her hand, the scribbled print, the short words and begging question. She crinkled her nose and tossed the parchment to the floor, then reconsidered this and shoved it into her dresser among her undergarments. She didn't want anyone, say Millicent, finding it and wondering what it was all about. Pansy wasn't very sure herself. All she knew was that this morning she had received a very curious owl with a roll of parchment attached to the scaly leg.

"From your mum?" Draco asked, giving the note a sideways glance. No, Pansy thought. She didn't recognize the handwriting. But she nodded slightly to Draco anyway, not caring to share the curious anonymosity of the letter.

"Just wishing me luck on my test," Pansy said, shoving the letter in her pocket. Later that day, in Potions class while Snape was carrying on about Potter being an arrogant git and whatnot (basically the usual banter), Pansy took the letter out of her pocket and glanced down at its words once again.

_What do I require? Whatever your heart desires. Meet me there, tonight at seven._ Pansy scoffed and shoved the letter back into her pocket. She had no way of knowing for sure who the letter was from, but she had an idea. If not for her encounter with this person a couple of days ago, Pansy would have assumed it was from Draco, but…

Now, she had someone different in mind. Well, there's no way I'm meeting him in that room, Pansy thought. She wondered at first how he would even know about it, but then realized that of course he would, being one of Harry's friends. Besides, what kind of girl did he think she was? She had just recently lost her virginity! She glanced at Draco and pouted. He had been very nice to her before, but after a couple of days (and a couple of shags) he had gone back to being the same old Draco. In fact, shagging had become a nightly habit of theirs, usually around 9 in the evening.

Now Pansy sat on her bed, thinking about the letter. It was five 'til seven, and she had no intention of meeting Fred at the room. She sighed—she didn't feel like meeting Draco there, either. It would just be the same old thing. A shag, little talking, then sending her back to the dorms alone so he could check for anything they might have left behind. Pansy had a better idea.

She dug in her school bag for a blank roll of parchment and an ink pen and began to write. Then she shoved the fresh note in her robe pocket and walked downstairs.

"Where are you going, Pansy?" Draco asked, standing up when she walked by.

"Just sending a letter back to my mum."

"But it's dark out."

Pansy shrugged and left the Common Room, walking silently through the hallways and outside to the stone walk that lead to the Owlery. She almost gave the letter to Tilly, her owl, but thought against it—if Draco saw Tilly giving a letter to a Gryffindor, he would grow suspicious, and probably a little upset. She walked to a random owl and attached the parchment, giving it a Knut.

"Deliver this to Fred Weasley tomorrow morning during breakfast," she whispered, stroking the owl's feathers. It cooed at her in agreement and Pansy gave it another pet before leaving.

---

Fred stood outside the Room of Requirement until eight o'clock before giving up and sauntering back to the Gryffindor Common Room. Pansy Parkinson had officially stood him up. That's a first, Fred thought. A girl has never stood me up before. But Pansy's different, he reminded himself, saying the password to the Fat Lady and crawling into the Common Room.

"Where were you?" George asked, who sat on a couch playing chess with Ron. Ron didn't so much as glance up at his brother, moving his knight to a position in which it crashed the head off of a poor pawn.

"I don't even know," Fred said. George winked.

"Playing the old games again?" he asked. Fred shook his head.

"No. But I should have been. "

George was referring to Fred's nightly visits with Hermione, the ones in which they left the Common Room and met in Myrtle's bathroom to shag. He sighed. Where is Hermione tonight, anyway? Fred thought.

"Katie's been looking for you," Ron said.

"I've hardly gotten a moment's peace from that girl…" Fred said, sitting down on the floor.

"She's good looking enough," Ron said, finally breaking eye contact with the chess board to look down at Fred. "So why are you complaining?"

Fred shrugged and folded his arms just as two small hands covered his eyes.

"Guess who!" a giggly voice called.

"Professor Snape?" Fred said in a bored voice. It was all he could do to amuse himself these days.

"No, silly!" Katie said, removing her hands and swinging around to give Fred a kiss on the cheek. "It's me!"

"Oh, splendid," Fred said, trying to sound enthused, but it ached to smile. Luckily, Katie didn't notice and grabbed him up by the arm.

"Come on, you! I want to show you something!" Katie squealed. Fred rolled his eyes at his brothers and let himself be dragged off and upstairs to the boys' dormitories. Katie walked down the hall until she entered the seventh year corridor and swung the door open to Fred's room. Fred grimaced at the framed picture above his bed, as he had been doing for the past couple of days, ever since Katie had hung it up for him.

"What is it you wanted to show me, Katie?" Fred asked. "Whoa!"

Katie was lying naked on Fred's bed, giggling. Well, almost naked—she had on a thin pair of black underwear, but her legs were spread in a provocative way that made her appear as if she had nothing on—Fred could see everything, anyway. In any other kind of situation, this might have turned Fred on, but he found himself wishing he could just kick her out and lay down for some sleep.

"What's wrong, Fred?" Katie asked, leaning forward and winking. "Don't you like it?"

"Yeah," Fred forced himself to say.

"Lock the door, silly!" Katie said. Fred turned slowly and closed the door, locking it. Then he turned back to Katie and took off his shoes. The same old routine, he thought bitterly. A boring shag with Katie, a few words, and then he told her she needed to leave before any of his dorm mates came in.

This was not like Fred at all.

Usually, he had his way with a girl in any way he pleased. Not with Katie. She grabbed him by the back of the head and pulled him on top of her, pulling him into the usual kiss. He kissed her back, trying to find excitement in feeling her up, but he only felt in a hurry to get this over with.

His mind flashed to Pansy and he suddenly felt a sting of arousal. Pansy had rejected him. The thought excited him. Fred didn't take rejection as _rejection_. Pansy had only proved to him that she was not an easy catch, and he would have to work harder if he wanted her. That was the part Fred always missed—the chase. Girls just gave in so easily these days.

"What's going on?" Katie asked, looking up into Fred's eyes, her smile gone.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked, pulling off his pants.

"You seem distracted."

"Do I?" Fred asked, kicking his boxers onto the floor and closing his eyes, placing his lips on Katie's neck.

"Well, sort of—"

"Sh…" Fred said. He didn't mean to do this, but he found himself pretending that it wasn't Katie underneath him, but Pansy. Well, all right, he did mean to do that, but he wouldn't have had any fun with it otherwise. He felt himself being more passionate, more aggressive, but in a loving way, and he kissed her more gently, with more care and concern. He tried to ignore Katie's voice, and he kept his eyes tightly shut lest he open them and discover that it was not his dear Pansy he was fucking, but someone that he could actually care less about…

"Whoa," Katie spoke when Fred was finished and rolled over on his back, panting. "That was different."

"Yeah," was all Fred could manage to say. Katie rolled over and kissed him, Fred's lips curling in disgust. He hoped Katie didn't notice.

"Well, I suppose I should go," Katie said, standing up and pulling on her clothes. She gave Fred another kiss before leaving, leaving Fred alone in his dizzy thoughts.

---

"Anything in the Daily Prophet, Hermione?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, any more people died?" Ron said through his toast.

"No," Hermione said, sighing and folding up the paper. Fred took a bite out of his toast just as an owl perched on his shoulder.

"What the hell?" he said.

"Looks like you've got a letter," George said. Fred raised his eyebrows and took the parchment off the owl's leg. He grinned when he read what was written on the parchment, then shoved it into his pocket so that Katie wouldn't see.

"Who's it from?" Hermione asked, staring at Fred curiously.

"None of your business," Fred said. When the others shrugged and went back to their breakfast, Fred turned his head slightly in the direction of the Slytherin table. Pansy was sitting beside Draco, reading an Arithmancy textbook. She looked up at Fred slightly, then lowered her head again, her hair falling in loose curls among her pretty face. Fred smiled.

_No. Tonight, outside at 5._


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Five**

Pansy's nerves bit her like a chill, and she shivered inside her robes, goose bumps trailing up her arms. It wasn't cold outside; in fact, it was just the opposite, the late afternoon sun beating down on the grass which Pansy stood upon. She considered removing her robes, but decided against it once she realized that all she wore underneath was a pair of shorts and a lacy white tank top. She didn't know Fred well enough to appear in common clothing, especially the kind that revealed her body in such a way. From across the lawn, she could barely make out a tall figure, one that walked in a strut that could almost resemble Draco, if not for the smile on the face of its beholder, and the head of long red hair that blew in its face from the slight breeze. Fred and Pansy had exchanged two more letters, one from him asking where exactly she wanted to meet, and one of hers telling him the place they had before, by the shore of the lake. But Pansy waited a bit away from the shore so she could see him coming, and when she did, she turned and walked back to the gleaming water, standing and staring out at its blue tide.

"I'd be careful if I were you," a sly voice said, coming up behind her. She could hear Fred's footsteps come to a halt, could smell the sweet cologne that he must be wearing. Funny, she hadn't smelt it before.

"Why?" she asked, turning around. Fred smiled when she did, the corners of his mouth rising to form two very small dimples, his eyes crinkling at the edges.

"Funny things live in there."

Pansy folded her arms. "Well I didn't plan on taking a dip."

"Bummer."

Pansy blushed and looked away, quite aware that Fred's gaze remained on her, his smile never fading.

"So why did you want to see me?" she asked. Fred shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged.

"I'm always up for a new friend. The more friends I have, the more sales I can make, and the more business the shop will have when it opens."

Pansy blinked. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Ah," Fred said. "I forgot you didn't know much about my brother and I, not being in the same house and all to see all of the mischief we're up to." He winked at this last part and Pansy rolled her eyes.

"Just kidding," Fred said. "But really, you should check us out some time. Especially if you want a little nose bleed or a high fever to get you out of class."

"Pranker?"

"The very best."

"A bit presumptuous of you."

"I deliver only the facts. You'd know if you were in Gryffindor, which you should be, seeing as you make such a terrible Slytherin."

"Is that why you wanted to see me? To rag on me?"

"Of course not," Fred said, patting Pansy's shoulder. "You're such a pretty little thing."

Pansy shrugged his hand away and began to walk, Fred following at her side.

"The truth?" Fred asked.

"If you're willing to offer it."

"And why wouldn't I?"

Pansy shrugged. "You'd be surprised."

"Hot out here, isn't it?" Fred said suddenly, tugging his long arms out of his scarlet robes and bringing them off over his head. He only wore a red shirt and khaki pants underneath, and Pansy blushed in surprise at the lean muscles that flexed as he tossed his discarded robes over one arm.

"Aren't you?" Fred asked.

"No, I'm fine."

"Suit yourself then."

"Thanks, I will."

They walked in a small silence around the shore that cut close to the forest, during which Fred discretely switched places with Pansy so that he was closest to the woods.

"The truth then," Fred said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"I assume you're not much for it."

Fred grinned. "I have to admit to my crimes eventually I suppose."

Pansy jumped when Fred grabbed her arm and pointed with the other.

"What?" Pansy asked moodily, trying to adjust to his touch, but it sent chills down her spine. She peered in the direction of Fred's elongated finger, at a large rock that jutted out into the body of water. Pansy followed Fred's lead as he ran toward the rock (except of course, Pansy didn't run) and climbed its side, pulling her up beside him to sit atop the great stone. Fred tugged off his shoes and placed them aside, rolling up his pant legs and dipping his toes into the cool water.

"Ah," Fred sighed, closing his eyes. "That's better."

Pansy sat rigidly on the rock behind Fred, her arms crossed tightly against her chest. Fred peeked out at her and cocked an eyebrow.

"Care to join me?"

"Um…er…I thought you said that there were…funny things in there," she said, eyeing the water suspiciously.

"Well if there were, it's just a toe you'd lose."

"Just a toe?" Pansy scoffed, but before she could do anything else Fred casually flicked his wand at her boots and Pansy watched wide-eyed as they unlaced themselves and went shooting off her feet onto the ground behind them. Pansy scowled.

"Now go ahead," Fred said, placing his wand back into his pocket.

"Hmph."

"Jesus Christ," Fred mumbled, and he grabbed Pansy around the waist and sat her beside him. She was surprised at how strong his hands felt around her, the warmth they emitted even through her thick robes. Gingerly, she hung her feet over the side of the rock and let her toes skim the waters.

"Care for a treat, then?" Fred asked, drawing his wand again. Pansy edged away but he didn't seem to notice, his big, sweet eyes staring into hers expectedly.

"Er…sure?"

He flicked his wand and a red and white checkered cloth appeared on the rock.

"What's your favorite food?" he asked.

"What?"

"You must be hungry. It's near dinner time."

"I like…" she almost said steak, but it only reminded her of Draco now and she was surprised at the knot in her stomach she got from thinking of him, especially in the presence of Fred. Fred was such gentle company—a bit mad, but gentle nonetheless. No pressure, Pansy thought.

"In that case, I like Magdelena Meat Pies," Pansy said, settling on her second favorite. Fred flicked his wand and a wicker basket appeared on the cloth. Pansy peered into it, the aroma filling her nostrils.

"And for dessert?" Fred asked, his wand at the ready.

"Blueberry cheesecake."

A large, round white cheesecake with real blueberries sitting on top of it with blue sauce appeared beside the basket, along with two plates and two full goblets of butter beer. Fred leaned back and handed Pansy her goblet, raising his own and clinking it against hers.

"To blueberry treats, then," he said, bringing the drink to his lips. "Mmm. You can never go wrong with butter beer, eh?"

Pansy frowned and took a sip. It was quite good. As they ate together, the sun set and the night began to cool, and Fred pulled on his robes and helped Pansy down from the rock. They walked back up to the castle in silence, but a serene silence that Pansy didn't mind too much, as Fred was sure to keep a funny grin on his face the entire time.

"Be careful going back there," he said. "Don't want you getting caught."

"Maybe if I did I'd get detention and I wouldn't have to hang around with you so much," Pansy sneered.

"Pity that would be," Fred said, glancing down at his watch. "Well, I'll see you around then, Parkinson."

"Likewise, Weasley."

But as Pansy turned on her heels and carefully opened the dungeon door, trying to keep quiet, she couldn't help the smile that broke out across her face.

---

Pansy refused to be the first one to speak, so she waited for three days without so much as a glance at Fred. And just as she had expected, another anonymous letter came to her one morning at breakfast, with a quick note scribbled on the parchment.

_Are you interested in the truth of the matter?_ It said. Pansy was troubled at first, but then it dawned on her—when Pansy had asked Fred the real reason why he had wanted to meet her, he had carefully changed the subject, and Pansy's mind had trailed off into the direction of the weather. Too bad, as she realized _now_ that she wanted to know.

_That depends upon how interesting the truth._

_Don't be coy._

"Who are you getting all these bloody owls from!" Draco barked on the third morning of Pansy and Fred's exchanged words.

"Mum," Pansy replied, shoving the letter into her robe.

"Jesus Christ that woman is mental," Draco mumbled, and Pansy cast a slight look at Fred, who was eating and talking with his two brothers. Embarrassed, she looked away, not unfolding the letter again until her Potions class.

_Not coy. Honest._

_If you want it, it will be waiting for you._

_Where?_

_Where you require it. _

_When?_

_Tonight._

"Honestly, what's wrong with your mother?" Draco asked feverishly, and in one swift movement he tore the letter out of Pansy's hand.

"No!" she shrieked.

"What?" Draco asked, skimming the words. "What is this?"

"I told you it's from my mum!" Pansy yelled, grabbing the paper back so quickly that she gave herself a paper cut. "Mind your own business, Draco!" Pansy stormed out of the Great Hall, not daring to look back lest the entire student body be staring at her outbreak. She paced back and forth, clutching the parchment furiously in one hand. She had considered not going, but now her mind was changing, if only to get Draco back. At least, that was the excuse Pansy told herself, for something feverish was broiling in her stomach, and it wasn't rage.

It was nerves. Jittery, excited nerves that erupted all over Pansy. Literally.

"Oh, bother!" she yelled, running into the bathroom and staring into her reflection, horrified at the large red hives that had just broken out on Pansy's arms and face. She heard the commotion of the students as breakfast ended and Pansy raced out of the bathroom and up the stairs before anyone could see her hideous face. With hot tears streaming down her face, she broke into the hospital wing and ran straight into the nurse.

"Dear, what's wrong?" Nurse Pomphrey asked, grabbing Pansy by the shoulders and peering down into her face.

"Now I can't see anything if you have your hands in the way."

Pansy pouted and placed her hands by her sides.

"Oh dear," the nurse said, frowning. "Hives then. Well, come on, let's give you something for them."

All of a sudden, something large came crashing into the hospital, hitting Pansy in the back. She shrieked and fell to her side, staring up at the large half-giant Hagrid who stood above she and the nurse.

"Whoops. Sorry there," Hagrid said, lifting Pansy back up with one hand.

"You look a little green, Hagrid," Pomphrey said, gazing up warily at the enormous man.

"Yeah, I er, I think I came down with somethin'" he said, his face twisting up and the room echoing in a loud _Achoo!_ that escaped. "I think I…" But Hagrid couldn't finish his sentence, as in another moment his eyes rolled in the back of his head and he fainted to the floor, Pansy yelping and jumping out of the way just in time.

"Oh dear," Pomphrey said, leaning down beside Hagrid. "I'm sorry Pansy, this looks like an emergency. Could you wait over on a bed? It shouldn't be long…"

"But my face!"

"It won't be long, dear," Pomphrey said, shooing Pansy away with the brief wave of a hand.

Pansy hung her head and walked over to one of the beds, laying down and whimpering into the pillow. She had only been there for a few minutes when she heard Nurse Pomphrey speak.

"Mr. Weasley, what are you doing here?"

"Just came to visit," Fred Weasley said lightly.

Pansy gasped and covered her face, tensing up as she heard Fred approach her bed.

"Hey there," he said, standing before her.

"Go away," Pansy replied sharply, embarrassed beyond belief.

"Hives is it? George used to get them all the time before meeting a cute girl. Not that George even got that many cute girls, as I'm the good-looking twin, but nonetheless, when that rare occasion came about…"

Fred tossed a small purple treat onto the bed beside Pansy and before she could say anything, he was gone. She grabbed the treat and examined it. Nurse Pomphrey bustled over and peered down at her.

"Are you okay then, dear? It will only be another hour or so."

"Another _hour_?"

"Yes, Hagrid is always a bother to treat…"

And without another word she hurried away. Pansy sighed and popped the treat into her mouth, praying to God that it wouldn't do something absolutely terrible to her. Even though Pansy had acted as if she knew nothing of the Weasleys, that was only her own little way of playing it coy. She knew all of their stories—everybody did. In a second though, Pansy felt her face cool, and she rose her hands to her cheeks to feel their smooth, fresh texture. She breathed a sigh of relief. She waited until Nurse Pomphrey was hidden behind Hagrid's massive body before sitting up quietly and slipping out of the hospital. She thought about Fred on her way back to the dormitories—how could she _not_ think about him? He seemed to be all she could keep her mind on lately, as sick as that was. Pansy keeping it close with a Gryffindor. The very thought would have made her sick to her stomach a few weeks ago, but it didn't seem so bad now that it was actually happening…

When Pansy got back to the common room, Draco gave her a quick glare but Pansy ignored him, hurrying upstairs. She closed her door and took out a piece of parchment. Quickly, she scribbled down a note and, again, ignoring Draco, walked out to the Owlry to deliver her letter.

---

"Who the hell have you been getting all these bloody notes from?" Ron asked, a dumbfounded expression flooding his face as a fat brown owl tapped on the Gryffindor Common Room window and blinked at Fred expectantly. Fred sighed, a slight grin spreading across his face, and opened the window so he could take the letter from the bird.

_Fine. So be specific._

Fred's grin grew wider. Should he tease the girl?

"Fred!" Katie squealed from across the room. "It's your turn to move!"

Fred grimaced and scratched his answer on the back of the parchment.

_Nine. _He gave the owl a knut and it cooed softly before flying away.

"Seriously Fred, do you have a secret girlfriend or something?" Ron said as Fred moved one of his chess pieces. Katie glared at Ron, then at Fred, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"It would be nice if you told me," Katie said, trying to keep a smile on her face as she ran a hand through Fred's hair. He shivered in disgust and one of his knights was killed.

"I told you that I can't, precious," he said, looking up at her with big doe eyes, "it will ruin the surprise."

"Hmph." Katie pouted, withdrawing her hand. The portrait hole opened and a frumpy-looking Harry entered, his tie loose around his neck and his hair messier than usual.

"Hey Harry," said Ron. "I was wondering where you'd gone off to."

"Another detention with Umbridge?" Fred asked, looking Harry up and down. "What did she do this time? Throw you into a lion's den?"

Harry blinked. "Oh. Yeah…we need to do something about her…" he said distractedly, taking off his tie and walking away from them. Ron shrugged at his brother before taking his move.

"He's been acting so weird lately," Ron said. "I guess he's stressed out."

"A lot of school work, then," Fred said. "Fifth year is the worst. Good thing you have Hermione around."

"Not lately," Ron said exasperatedly. "She's been acting shady. And I really need her to help me with this Potions paper I have due tomorrow…" Fred listened to Ron ramble on about Hermione for a little while, if only because it reminded him of how sweet he used to have it with that girl. But then his mind began to drift at the thought of tonight, and how he was meeting Pansy. He thought about their encounter today and how embarrassed she had been to see him like that—but he found it incredibly cute for some reason. Pansy Parkinson cute? Now that was an idea. And one he was growing quite used to…


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Six**

"Going somewhere, Pansy?"

Pansy stepped back from the door, her hand slipping off the knob.

"Yes," she said meekly to Draco, who was standing in the middle of the Common Room, his arms crossed and his eyes stern.

"Where?" he asked briskly.

Pansy frowned. "I don't see why I have to tell you."

"I'm a prefect, Pansy. I can get you into a shit load of trouble for this."

"And I'm in the Inquisitorial Squad. So fuck off."

"Fuck off?" Draco asked, taking a step forward. "Who do you think you are, telling me to fuck off?"

"I have somewhere to be," Pansy growled, and without another word she yanked open the door and stormed out of the Common Room. Fucking prat, she thought, trying not to stomp too loudly on the old flooring, but it was difficult when Draco always had a habit of making her so irritated, especially when she was on her way to meet Fred.

"Lumos," she muttered, and a small light appeared at the tip of her wand. Quietly, she tiptoed up a flight of stairs and down a hallway. She didn't even want to meet Fred in the room; it reminded her too much of Draco, and she was trying terribly to forget him right now. She came to the blank wall and stood. Fred was no where to be seen. Pansy stomped her foot irritably and shoved her wand back in her pocket.

"I wasn't sure you'd come," a voice said from behind Pansy. Startled, she jumped and spun around, drawing her wand again, the tip relighting. Fred grinned into the light.

"Well I told you I would, didn't I?" she asked.

"I suppose you did," he said, taking a step forward. "So, did you have a good day?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Pansy said, her face burning in humiliation as she thought about their encounter in the hospital.

"Your call," Fred said. He tilted his head and winked. "I just didn't know I had that effect on you."

"Who says!—"

"So," Fred interrupted her, looking up at the blank wall.

She sighed. "So what?"

"Have you ever used this room before?" he asked. Pansy tried to hide her blush—yes, she had used to loads of times, and she hoped he couldn't see her guilty expression.

"Obviously, or else I wouldn't know to meet you here."

"What did you use it for?"

"That's none of your business, really."

"Ah," Fred said, winking. "Perfectly understood."

"I didn't mean—"

"It's called the Room of Requirement. Whatever you want, or whatever you need, it gives to you."

Pansy gazed up at the wall. She had no idea what she needed right now.

"I don't know," she said.

"Hm. Well maybe I can think of something."

Fred closed his eyes and Pansy watched his lips move, as if he wanted to say it aloud. Suddenly, a door appeared in front of them and Fred smiled at Pansy.

"I hope this is all right," he said, opening the door.

"Is what all right?" Pansy asked, a little skittish about what Fred had asked.

"Ah. Looks fine to me," he said, smiling. "Come on in."

Fred took Pansy's hand and her heart skipped a beat, but she pretended not to notice the strange tingling sensation she felt moving up and down her arm. The room was very large now, with shiny flooring and a glass ceiling, the night sky and the stars shining down on them. Pansy gasped up at the beauty of it and closed the door behind her.

"What is it?" Pansy asked. Fred grinned and flicked his wand at a little music player at the end of the room, and a song began to drift across to them, filling the silence with a beautiful melody.

"Do you dance, Pansy Parkinson?"

Pansy's jaw dropped and she looked up at Fred.

"Are you kidding?"

Fred put his arms around her gently.

"No. I happen to be a very good dancer," he said, twirling her around once. She let go and backed away slightly.

"But we're wearing our robes," she said, frowning. Fred laughed.

"You want to dress for the occasion, do you?" he asked, and pointed behind Pansy.

Pansy bit her lip and looked around to see that a long, sparkling blue gown had appeared, along with a suit for Fred. Fred flicked his wand and the clothes appeared on both of them. He took Pansy's hand and lead her out onto the floor.

"Now, you didn't answer my question," he said, putting a hand on her waist. "Do you like to dance?"

"Yes," she shrugged. "I wish I had gotten to do it more at the Yule Ball, but Draco wanted to leave early." She rolled her eyes. "Sorry, don't mean to bring him up."

"Is he still your boyfriend?" Fred asked.

"I suppose so."

Fred twirled her around and pulled her to him, his hand stroking the back of her hair.

"And do you like him?" he asked. Pansy lowered her eyes and leaned her forehead against his shoulder. She didn't intend on answering that question right now, and he seemed to understand, because he slowed his dancing and the music softened.

"The truth," Fred said. "Why I wanted to see you."

Pansy said nothing.

"You intrigue me, Pansy Parkinson."

"Why?"

Fred paused a moment. "I like the way you speak. I like the way you move. And I like that you're not sure about things."

"Those aren't very good reasons."

"No. But they're reasons, aren't they?"

Pansy fell out of Fred's grip and the two stopped dancing. Fred was looking down at her with his hands in his pockets, his long hair messy and feral, his grin crooked.

"I should go," Pansy said, turning to leave.

"What about the dress?" Fred asked.

"Oh, uh…" she looked up at him. "Could you give me my other clothes back?"

Fred cocked an eyebrow. "I…don't know how…"

"Yes you do!"

"Sorry. Nope."

Pansy narrowed her eyes at him but his grin only grew wider.

"I'll just walk back in this."

"Not a very smart idea. Someone might see you and wonder what you're doing in those clothes."

"So? I'll come up with something."

Fred shrugged. "Maybe. But you're not particularly sneaky."

"Fine," Pansy said, and reached back to unzip the dress. She let it fall to her ankles and stepped out of it, throwing it aside. Fred's expression didn't change.

"Well now you have no clothes on," Fred said.

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"Because I can."

Pansy crossed her arms. "You're a git."

"Now, now, Parkinson," he said, stepping toward her. "That won't get you what you want."

"What will?"

"Oh, I could think of a few things."

Pansy rolled her eyes.

"I know I shouldn't have come. Everyone here is the same."

"What do you mean?"

"You don't get it, do you Fred? I know about this room because Draco takes me here. And Draco only takes me here because he wants to fuck me. I guess you could say that he and I are dating, but I'm nothing but a shag toy to him. You think you're so fucking brilliant bringing me here. Do you think one dance will make me want to shag you?" Pansy had tears in her eyes now, her lips quivering, but Fred's grin had been completely wiped away by a look of shock and worry.

"That's not why I brought you here at all, Pansy," he said, his eyes dark and serious. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

Fred flicked his wand at her and her clothes reappeared, but for some reason this just made her cry more. Pansy wiped her eyes and scrambled out of the room, her hands shaking when she went for the door handle. Fred hurried after her.

"No," she said when he put a hand on her shoulder. "I don't want to have anything to do with you." She said, and ran off, her boots echoing down the hall.

---

"Pansy," Draco whispered. She shot him a look before shoving her nose back into her History book, then moved out of that particular library aisle.

"Pansy," Draco said a little more loudly, his eyebrows lowered.

"What?" she asked, glaring up at him. "What do you want?"

Draco looked around the room. "I need to talk to you," he said.

Pansy slammed shut her book and shoved it into her bag.

"I don't see why you would ever want to do _that_."

"Don't be stupid, Pansy."

"See," she said, swinging her backpack on and standing up. "'Don't be stupid Pansy.' I'm not being stupid. I don't want to talk to you. So what? Get used to it, Draco."

It had been three days since Pansy had broken it off with Draco. When she had gotten back to the Slytherin Common Room in tears, he'd harassed her to her breaking point, demanding to know where she'd been and even grabbing her shoulders to try to shake it out of her. Finally, Pansy had gotten away from his grip and told him that she didn't want to be with him anymore. He had ignored her for the past two days, but now he was following her around, demanding to talk to her as if he had permission.

As if matters weren't worse enough, Pansy also had to avoid Fred, who had sent her four letters asking to speak to her. She had ignored all of them.

"Pansy, why are you doing this?" Draco asked. Pansy growled exasperatedly. If he didn't realize what a prat he was, she wasn't going to spoon feed him. "Pansy!" Draco yelled. Everyone in the library looked up at the pair and Madam Pince hurried over.

"What is the matter with you two?" she asked angrily. "Don't you see that this is a place of study?"

"I _was_ studying," Pansy snapped. "Until _he_ came along."

"Well both of you need to leave," Madam Pince said, but Draco was already out the door. Pansy felt a sting of guilt tug at her stomach. She had, after all, been seeing Fred behind his back. He had a right to be curious, even a little upset. But she had made up her mind—she had had enough of Draco regardless. He never treated as well as he should, and he always got overly upset about things. Good riddance, she thought, and trudged out of the library. She hung her head as she walked past Draco and into a hallway, deciding to take a detour to the Common Room so she could go upstairs to her dorm and study in peace.

"Whoa, sorry," Pansy said as her body bumped straight into someone.

"Pansy?"

Pansy looked up at the tall boy she had run into. Bloody brilliant, she thought.

"Isn't this how we first met?" Fred asked, grinning. Pansy groaned and shoved past him.

"I've been trying to contact you," he said, following her in step.

"Yes, I know."

"Listen Pansy, I know you're freaked out about what I said to you. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. I was just teasing you. I didn't think…well…I _thought_…"

"You thought I was that kind of girl."

Fred shrugged. "Like I said, I didn't plan on fucking you. But I _am_ a man, Pansy."

"No," Pansy said. "You're a boy."

Fred flipped his hair out of his eyes. "And you're a girl. So hex me for being a little curious."

"Well I'm sorry, but you've got the wrong idea entirely."

"Do I?" Fred asked, stopping in front of her at a corner. "I was under the impression that you enjoyed my company."

"I did," Pansy admitted, and tried to move past him but he didn't budge. She shoved him but he was too strong and merely smiled down at her.

"Pansy, you have to understand what you're doing to me."

She drew her wand. "Move."

"Pansy. I've been on two dates with you. I've spent the past few weeks talking to you regularly. I've seen you cry."

"Move!"

Fred ran a hand through her hair. "I've done all of that, and I'm still interested in you. Pansy, that has never happened to me before."

"What hasn't?"

Fred sighed. "I'm entirely fickle when it comes to women."

"Charming."

"What I mean to say is…you're the exception."

This time when Pansy tried to get away from Fred he stepped aside. She gazed back at him curiously.

"You can't run forever, Parkinson," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and tilting his head to one side, his crooked smile beaming. Pansy sneered and walked away, but as she did so, only one thought was playing in her mind: _I don't want to run from you._

---

Fred knew all of Pansy's classes, and seeing how he never really attended any of his own, he had more than enough time to stalk her.

"I like to call it "looking after"," Fred told George one sunny day when they were laying outside in the grass. Fred had confessed his infatuation for Pansy to George a couple of days ago; his brother wasn't very surprised. In fact, he seemed a little bored by the fact.

"You'll never get her," George said. "She's with Malfoy."

"Not anymore."

"What? You're kidding?"

"Nope. Katie saw them fighting in the library and when she asked Millicent about it, she told her that they had broken up."

George snorted. "Millicent talked to Katie?"

Fred smiled. "Millicent will talk to anyone if it involves gossip, I suppose."

"Hey Fred, George!" Ron called, walking over to them. Fred noticed that a lot of students were letting out of classes and he stood up, wondering which was the best route to take to catch Pansy. "Have you guys seen Harry lately?"

George shrugged. "I guess not. Why?"

"Well I didn't see him last night and he was supposed to do a paper with me."

"Maybe you should do your own bloody papers," George said.

"Yeah, George and I didn't have bloody Hermione or Harry to help us with our homework when we were fifth years."

"Yeah, and that's why you didn't get more than two Owls apiece," Ron snapped.

"Wasn't Harry in class today?" George asked.

"No."

"Come to think of it, he has been acting kind of shady lately," George said. Fred's mind was still spinning with routes to Pansy's classrooms when he saw a shiny head of dark hair and combat boots turn a corner—he wouldn't have to think of any. He excused himself from his two brothers and headed toward Pansy.

"No, Hermione can't help me…she hasn't been helping me for weeks…hasn't been around…" he heard Ron say to George as he walked away.

"Hey Parkinson," Fred yelled. Pansy stopped and turned around, rolling her eyes. "Hey," he said again when he had caught up to her. They walked in pace for a while until Pansy settled under an apple tree and closed her eyes, resting her head against the bark.

"I haven't been getting much sleep."

"Why not?"

Pansy brushed a piece of grass off her skirt. "I don't know."

"I think I might have a pill for insomnia."

"No thank you."

"I wish I had a pill to make you stop hating me though, Parkinson," Fred said, leaning casually against the tree. "You play so hard to get."

"It would be much easier to give in."

Fred raised his eyebrows. "Would you like to?"

Pansy could feel her face growing hot. Little conversations like this were nothing but coy exchanges, but she couldn't help feeling how intriguing it would be to actually give in to whatever Fred wanted. It would certainly take some of the pressure off her, and the confusion about Draco. Fuck Draco, she thought. Why does it always have to come back to him?

"What exactly do you have in mind?" Pansy asked.

Fred shrugged. "I'm not a planner. I'm a doer."

"People will talk."

"You're right. I do have a reputation to uphold." Fred smirked down at her.

"I don't want anything serious," Pansy said.

"Do I look like a serious guy?"

"Of course you don't."

Fred sat down beside Pansy and stroked her hair. "I just want to be around you for five seconds without you running off."

"Fine. Would you like me to cut the nasty act, as well?"

Fred grinned. "Please don't. That's what I like about you."

Pansy looked up at Fred. "You know that Draco and I broke up, right?" She didn't mean to say it, as she didn't want to give him any ideas, but she blurted it out anyway.

Fred shrugged.

"It makes no difference to me," he said. He stood up and held out his hand; Pansy took it and he tugged her up to stand beside him. "Like you said Parkinson, nothing serious."

"Right."

"We'll just be friends."

"Okay."

"And I'll just…pretend that I don't know you whenever we're in public."

Pansy crossed her arms. "Fine."

Fred winked. "For your sake, Pansy. Not mine. Can you imagine the blasphemy of it? A Slytherin and a Gryffindor?" Fred checked his watch. "Well I have to be going, I have a class, I think." He saw Pansy frown a little, but she gained her composure and smiled.

"Whoa! Now that's something you don't see every day," Fred exclaimed.

"Don't expect to see much of it," Pansy said, strutting past him. "I'm a very difficult girl."

Fred grinned. "I think I can handle it."


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Seven**

Draco looked at himself in the mirror, as he did quite often, and tried to figure out what was wrong with him. I'm good looking enough, he thought, inspecting his white-blonde hair that hung loosely over his mystical gray eyes, his full lips and his lean arms. I'm popular, he thought. The thing was, these things didn't reassure him. Pansy had never really seemed particularly interested in bragging about Draco's good qualities—she didn't pine over him as other girls wished they could do. The only thing he knew for sure was that Pansy had been his girlfriend ever since first year, but they had known each other since they were babies because their parents were such good friends. Once they entered Hogwarts, they hung out together the most; Pansy was his first real friend, and it just seemed natural that they be together.

A tear leaked down his cheek. How did she expect him to live without her now?

"God damn it!" he yelled, his voice echoing through the bathroom, his fist slamming down onto the ceramic sink. He winced in pain and grabbed his hand just as a loud _splash!_ sounded from one of the bathroom stalls.

"What's wrong, Draco?" a familiar voice asked.

"Nothing, Myrtle," Draco muttered, sinking down onto the floor and looking up at the gray ghost. She frowned and floated down to him.

"Now I know that isn't true," she said. "I can tell when you're upset."

"Shall I call it a woman's intuition?" Draco asked, frowning. "You're going to make me talk about it, aren't you?"

"No," Myrtle said. "But you always do."

Draco sighed. "Why are you the only girl I can trust, Myrtle?"

Myrtle shrugged and removed her glasses, rubbing the lenses with her shirt.

"It's Pansy," Draco said, frowning at her name. He had been frowning for the past three days, since her name was the only thing on his mind.

"What happened?" Myrtle asked.

"She dumped me."

Myrtle screeched. "Why?"

Draco scowled. "I don't know. She didn't give me a reason."

"Well I never liked that girl," Myrtle pouted. "You're better off."

"You don't understand," Draco said, shaking his head. "I won't be. I can't be."

"Oh, poor Draco. There are other fish in the sea."

"But she's the only girl I've ever liked. The only girl I've ever kissed. The only girl I've ever…"

"…ever what?" Myrtle asked suspiciously.

"Nevermind," Draco said quickly. "Myrtle. I love her."

"Do you?"

"Yes. I do. I love her. I love Pansy Parkinson with all my heart." He put his face in his hands. "How could she do this to me? Doesn't she know that she's killing me?"

"Hm…"

"What?"

"Does she know that you love her?"

"Of course she does!" Draco scoffed. "How could she not? We've been together forever."

"That wasn't my question," Myrtle said, floating closer to Draco. "My question is, does she know that you love her?"

Draco looked up at Myrtle gravely.

"Have you ever told her that you love her?"

"Yes!" Draco said, but he was trying to think hard of a time when he had said the words 'I love you' to Pansy and he couldn't. "Maybe not," he said, frowning guiltily up at Myrtle.

"There we go," Myrtle said.

"I am an idiot."

"No," Myrtle cooed. "I never thought Pansy really appreciated you, anyway."

Draco shook his head. "How do I get her back?"

"You want her back?"

"Yes!"

"Hm…" Myrtle said. "You forget that I'm dead, Draco. I'm not exactly a love expert."

"I know, but you're the only person I can talk to about these things," Draco said. "Besides, you're a girl. You must have some ideas."

"Hm…let me think about it. I might be able to come up with a few."

---

"So, how's your double life going?" Fred asked. Pansy shook her head and smiled, laying down on the couch. Fred had taken her to the room again, and it had turned into exactly what Pansy needed right now—a place to relax. Fred looked a bit reluctant to walk into a room with Pansy that had a resting place, in case Pansy freak out at its "potential", but she just sighed and fell onto the couch.

"Fine," she said, curling her knees up to her chest as Fred shut the door. "Yours?"

"Splendid."

He kneeled down beside her, peering into her eyes. They electrified Pansy, the deep brown irises bright with jubilance.

"Do you miss him?" Fred asked. Pansy frowned.

"Who?"

"Draco."

"Hm…I haven't really thought about it."

"Good girl. Don't. But if you do, eat this." Fred handed Pansy a pink and purple muffin. She raised an eyebrow at it.

"What is it?"

"A Love Eraser. Of course, it doesn't erase love. It just makes you forget about it for a while."

Pansy took a small bite of the muffin. "Maybe I could use a little bit of it."

Fred chuckled and twirled a piece of Pansy's hair in his fingers.

"Are you sure it doesn't create love?"

"What?"

Pansy smiled. "I don't hate you as much today."

Fred grinned and kissed Pansy on the cheek. "You're a sweet girl." He stood up and headed toward the door.

"Where you are going?" Pansy asked. Fred stopped, his hand on the knob, and looked back at her.

"I can't stay here."

"Why not?" she asked, sitting up.

Fred smirked down at her. "Trust me. You don't want me to stay." He looked her up and down. "You don't know what it's like to be a guy."

"Oh, please," Pansy said. "I've dealt with worse. Besides, I don't want to be alone." She crossed her arms and shook her head, wondering if Fred being there would even help.

"You're not alone. You have your muffin."

Pansy snorted and set the muffin down. "Gee thanks."

Fred sighed and sat down next to Pansy.

"I'll stay for a little while, then. Lay down."

"Why?"

"Please?"

Pansy lay down hesitantly, resting on her side but looking up at Fred suspiciously.

"Roll over onto your stomach."

"What!" Pansy said, starting to sit up again, but Fred playfully pushed her down and dug his hands into her back.

"Just a little rest and relaxation," he said. Pansy felt weird at first, having Fred's hands touch her in such a soothing way. Massages were a little too intimate for Pansy, but she was really stressed and decided to just keep her mouth shut and try to enjoy it. She twitched a little when his fingers found their way under the bottom of her shirt and touched her skin.

"You're freezing," he said, rubbing his hands on her to warm her up.

"Your hands are just really hot."

"Your whole body is freezing," he said, feeling her arms and the back of her neck. He grabbed her waist and sat her on his lap, putting his arms around her. Pansy sat stiffly for a moment, not sure of what to do. Fred nuzzled her hair.

"You smell like vanilla," he said.

"Er…thanks."

"Loosen up," he said. "I'm not going to bite."

She crossed her legs and sat Indian-style facing him, leaning her head down to touch his. "That's unfortunate."

Fred grinned. "For some reason I'm getting the sick image of all Slytherins being sado-masochists."

Pansy laughed. "Sick? You wouldn't enjoy it?"

She felt his fingers trace her spine as his eyes fell on her, the warmth of his body circulating through hers, his smile, like always, sending her heart racing.

"I don't know," he shrugged.

"It wasn't a serious question."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Oh, I take sex very seriously."

Pansy blushed when he said that word, if only because she was sitting on his lap. Being in such close proximity with someone discussing sexual acts would make anyone feel flustered.

"You're burning up, now," Fred laughed. He laced his fingers in hers and bit her neck unexpectedly. Pansy winced and tried to break free, his teeth biting down a bit harder than she would expect.

"Sorry," he said as Pansy rubbed the red teeth marks. "I told you I shouldn't be here with you."

"What's the worst that could happen?"

Fred locked eyes with Pansy and she froze. He leaned into her, their lips centimeters apart. His breathing grew more rapid, his expression more feral, and his fingers stroked her soft locks gently. Hesitantly, Pansy put a hand on Fred's arm, moved it up to his shoulder, delicately traced themselves down to his chest where she found herself unbuttoning his sweater. Fred looked down at her fingers and shrugged off his sweater, wearing nothing but a white wife beater underneath. The muscles in his arms flexed and he grabbed Pansy's waist. Pansy gasped as he pulled her down and lay her on the couch, his body on top of hers. His lips grazed her neck, his hands crawling beneath her shirt, his fingertips gently tracing her skin. He placed a warm hand on her back.

"Heh," Fred murmured, and suddenly he stopped, sitting up, leaving Pansy flustered and shocked all at the same time.

"What the hell?"

"I told you."

"But—"

"Pansy," Fred said, looking serious. He was sitting on his knees now, staring down at her. "Do you really want me to do what I want to do?"

Pansy shook her head, confused. "I don't know."

"Exactly." He stood up and walked toward the door.

"You don't want to?" she asked.

"I want to," Fred said, chuckling gravely. "You have no idea." He opened the door. "But I won't, not until you're sure."

---

Fred had never had worse blue balls in his life.

"Jesus Christ," he muttered, strolling into the Gryffindor Common Room at ten.

"What are you doing out so late?" the Fat Lady had asked upon Fred's arrival. He gave her the password and crossed his arms.

"None of your business."

"Hmph," she said, and swung open the door, muttering something to herself about "nymphomaniacs" and "naughty boys…"

"Fred!" Katie yelled, her eyes flashing with anger. Shit, Fred thought. He had a tendency to forget all about Katie. "Where the hell were you?"

Fred ran a hand through his hair and shrugged. For once he had nothing to say. He had to get to his room to take care of his "problem." He rushed away from Katie, who stood staring dumbstruck at him with her arms crossed moodily across her chest, and ascended the stairs to the boys' dorms.

"Sausage in your pants?" Hermione said, stepping out of no where when he reached the fifth years hallway. Fred smirked.

"You would know."

"Ouch," she said, smiling naughtily at him. "Where were you?"

"Why do you care to know?" Fred asked, walking past her and toward the next hallway. Hermione followed him.

"I don't. But it gets really annoying having to listen to Katie all the time."

"Oh?"

Fred opened the door and walked through the sixth years hallway, Hermione still in his wake.

"Yes, you really need to start telling her where you are." Fred finally got to the seventh year hallway and opened the door to his dorm. He turned back to Hermione and raised an eyebrow.

"Do you mind?"

She cocked an eyebrow at his erection. "Not at all." And she turned on her heels and left.

Fred shook his head and smiled. He missed that girl. Oh well, he sighed. He lay on the bed and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Pansy smelled so sweet, and he loved the way she fit in his lap, how she was so dainty and fragile but could snap at him at any moment. A fierce beauty, he thought. Truth be told, he had never been so tempted to make love with anyone as much as he had tonight with Pansy. She was just lying there, smitten in his arms, something that took him by surprise and excited him at the same time. Was it possible that she could have feelings for him? Or was she playing a game? It was all so confusing. Well, even the dirtiest pranksters meet their match, Fred knew. But Pansy wasn't just some girl he was playing with. He had known all along that she wouldn't be. He cared for Pansy in every way. His heart leapt from just being in the same room as her. She was everything he wanted, because she was everything he had never expected he would want.

---

"I love you, Pansy," Draco muttered. "I love you, Pansy. I love you Pansy…" he sauntered through the crowded hallway, his head down, his eyes closed. His heart was beating so quickly. He planned to tell Pansy during Potions. He had actually planned to tell her last night when he had gotten back from seeing Myrtle, but she didn't get in until after ten, and by then Draco had lost his nerve, anyway. He walked into the dungeon, nodded at Snape, and sat down.

"What's wrong, Draco?" Snape asked, peering down at Draco.

"What do you mean?"

"You look a little…" Snape raised his eyebrows. "Green. Not to mention, you're here so early…"

Just then the other students began to enter, including Potter, whom Draco sneered at but generally did nothing to because he was not in the mood. Snape glided away to the front of the classroom and Draco's calm became clammy when he saw Pansy walk in and sit beside him, as they were lab partners and she had to sit beside him even though she hated him right now.

"Today you will conduct a Poppy Potion for me," Snape said, flicking his wand at the board to reveal the ingredients. "You have until the end of the period. You may begin."

Pansy stood up immediately and walked to get her ingredients from the cupboards and Draco watched her sadly. She looked awfully pretty today with her hair tied back in a loose braid and her skirt freshly pressed. A week ago that was mine, he thought morosely.

"You look nice today," he said to her when she came back to the table. She cast him a sideways glance before pouting and staring up hard at the board. "Did you do something new with your hair?"

"No," Pansy said, and began to mix the first ingredients. "Well are you going to help me or are you going to just stand there like you usually do when we have to make something in class?"

Draco begrudgingly glanced up at the directions, but his eyes were blurry from lack of sleep and too many spilt tears to concentrate.

"I can't," he said.

"What do you mean, you can't? You can't do any of the damn work?"

"I can't," he said, hanging his head. "I'm a wreck."

"Get a hold of yourself," Pansy said, pouring some sort of orange dust into her cauldron. Draco acted like he was going to add a greenish-purple liquid to the mix and let his hand brush up against hers. She felt so soft. He wanted to lean over and kiss her, to grab her and know that she was his again. He had never realized before that he could so freely do that, and he regretted every moment that he hadn't.

But Pansy pulled her hand away. "Stop it Draco."

"Stop what?"

Pansy sighed and raised her hand. Snape came over to the pair.

"Yes?" he asked.

"I need a new partner."

"Why?"

Pansy glanced at Draco. "Personal reasons."

Snape sighed. "As much as I would like "personal reasons" to be an excuse to stop doing things Parkinson, I'm afraid it's too late to change partners now."

"But Professor—"

"Just do your assignment."

He glanced at Draco, who shrugged and pretended to look at the board, before walking away.

"Mature," Draco said.

"Please, just don't talk to me."

"Fine," Draco said through gritted teeth. "I won't say another fucking word."

"Fine then." Pansy stirred the mixture, sighing. Draco watched her lips quiver and felt his own begin to do so. He scooted closer to Pansy, who didn't move away, just hung her head and stopped paying attention to the potion. Draco bit his lip, trying not to say anything, just as she had asked. Maybe you need to start listening to her, Myrtle had suggested, even though Myrtle was reluctant to give any advice if it involved Draco winning Pansy back. Myrtle had a bit of a thing for Draco, which was sweet, but weird, because Myrtle was dead and that was something that even Draco wouldn't touch. He took the stirrer from Pansy, their fingers grazing, and began to stir it for her.

"Counterclockwise," she muttered. Draco simply nodded and began to stir the other way. He saw a small tear fall from Pansy's beautiful violet eye and took a deep breath. He didn't know why she was crying. He wanted to hold her. He wanted to ask her. But maybe she wasn't even crying over him. Maybe she had something else entirely on her mind and wasn't even concerned with their break-up. How could she not even care? Draco thought. How could she stop loving me so suddenly, when she has loved me for so long? Suddenly, he remembered what he had planned to say to Pansy, and turned to her sheepishly. She looked up at him.

"What?" she asked.

"Pansy, I—"

"Time is up," Snape said. "Bring your potions to me."

"Shit," Pansy said, standing up and shooing Draco's hand away, scooping what they had of the potion into their phial. Draco gathered her things for her while she was gone and handed them to her. She looked at him strangely before taking them.

"Thanks," she muttered, slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

"No problem," said Draco, grabbing his own things and hurrying after her. "May I talk to you now?" he asked when they had reached the hallway.

"Okay," she said, and stopped to look up at him. "Whatever it is you want to say, just say it quickly so I can leave and get on with my life."

"Is that what you want to do?" Draco asked. "Get on with your life?"

"Yes."

"A life without me?"

Pansy sniffed. "_Yes_."

"Fine," Draco sneered. "I suppose both of us are better off."

"Yes, I suppose so!" Pansy growled, and shoved past him. Draco watched her walk away before running into the nearest restroom; once there, he ran into a stall and sat on the floor, where he began to weep uncontrollably into his robes.

---

"I'm sure," Pansy said, grabbing Fred by the arm and leading him outside, peeking over her shoulder to make sure no one was looking. The hallway had been pretty deserted and she had just happened to hear a bit of mischief in the form of two redheaded boys when she decided—this was not a coincidence. She needed to talk to Fred. _Now_.

George gave Fred a knowing look and smirked, turning to Pansy.

"Hey, sure about what?" he asked. Fred elbowed his twin in the ribs and George took this as his cue to leave—but not before winking at Fred. Fred rolled his eyes and stopped walking, turning to face Pansy.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, smirking in the same manner as his brother, only a bit of confusion twinkling in his eyes.

"You know," Pansy said, biting her bottom lip and edging toward him. "I'm _sure_."

Fred laughed. "All of a sudden?"

"Yes!" Pansy's eyes flashed—she knew how unattractive this kind of pressuring was, but she didn't care at the moment. She needed to distract herself. She needed_ anything _to make her feel in control. It's not like she was using Fred—she did rather like him, enjoyed his company most of the time—but right now, he was her convenience rather than her companion.

"I don't think you are," Fred said, his expression hardening.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, have you thoroughly considered the consequences?"

"What consequences?"

Fred raised his eyebrows. "Your offer is quite personal."

"You want it, don't you?"

A tear leaked from Pansy's eye and she wiped it away quickly, but not before Fred noticed.

"What's wrong, Pansy?" he asked, his voice low and gentle. She sniffled, planning to hold back, but before she knew it she was falling into Fred's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her, stroking her hair and back soothingly as she cried into his shoulder.

"It's—it's—h-him!" she wailed.

"Who?"

"Fucking Draco!"

"Shhh…" Fred whispered. "What happened?"

Pansy shook her head, backing away to look up at him.

"I just need him to leave me alone."

Fred stroked her face with the side of his hand. "He will." He looked around. "Come on, let's go somewhere where we can talk."

Pansy nodded, her throat sore from choking on salty tears, and let Fred hold her hand and lead her down the familiar halls that lead to their special room. However, when they got there, a door was already present.

"Shit," Fred said, gazing at it frustratingly. "It looks like someone else requires something at the moment. Do you mind if we go somewhere else?"

"Where?"

Fred looked pensive. "There's an abandoned girls bathroom that we can go to."

"What?" Pansy asked, but Fred was already smiling and dragging her along by the arm.

"It's perfect, no one ever comes here because of Myrtle."

"Oh, I've been here before," Pansy said, peering up at the bathroom door.

"Yeah, she probably won't have any interest in talking to _us_," Fred said. He put his hand on the door, about to push it open, when he looked down at Pansy, his eyes gleaming.

"Pansy, I have to tell you something," he said.

"Okay."

He leaned down and put his mouth beside her ear. "Don't tell anyone, because it's a secret."

His lips brushed her ear and he put a hand on the small of her back, drawing her nearer. Pansy's heart skipped a beat when she felt his hot breath on her cheek, his soft lips trailing across her jaw. He paused in front of her, eyes closed, his lips barely touching hers, and then finally he lowered them into a deep kiss. Pansy gripped his arms and he pushed her up against the bathroom door, which swung open and they fell inside, causing Fred to glance up in alarm at their sudden entrance, catching the wall with his hand to regain balance—but when he looked up, what he saw shocked the hell out of him.

"_Hermione_?" Fred exclaimed. He stared open-mouthed and wide-eyed at Hermione, her skirt hiked up to her hips, her shirt unbuttoned and her lips locked with no other than Harry Potter. Hermione broke away from Harry, whose glasses fell off and left him terribly confused, and stared back at Fred, blushing uncontrollably.

"Fred!" she exclaimed, smoothing her skirt back down. By now Harry had thrown his glasses back on and he was turning to look at who had entered.

"_Fred_?" he asked, looking a bit shocked.

"Harry!" Fred said, equally surprised. Then Harry and Hermione noticed who was wrapped in Fred's arms.

"_Parkinson_?" They both exclaimed, the shock never ceasing to erase from their faces. Pansy cleared her throat and backed out of Fred's embrace, standing awkwardly beside him.

"Oh, my God," Hermione said. "Fred, how could you do this to Katie?"

Harry sneered. "To Katie? How could he do this to any Gryffindor—fooling around with a Slytherin!"

"Shut your mouth, Potter," Pansy growled. Fred shushed her and stepped forward.

"Don't tell anyone," he said. Hermione sighed.

"You have to tell Katie."

Fred ran a hand through his hair. "I know…but what about you two! You know, Ron's been in a right state wondering where you two have been off at!"

Harry looked guilty and opened his mouth to say something but Hermione got there first.

"It's just a thing," she said, pulling on her blouse and buttoning it—she had no shame, standing here in front of two boys half-naked. Fred was quickly reminded of how hot Hermione was, but pushed it out of his mind.

"Fred," she continued. "You need to break it off with Katie."

Fred shoved his hands in his pockets. "I will."

Hermione crossed her arms. "Tonight."

Fred rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"Thank you," Hermione said, gathering her things.

"This is really going to mess up her game, you know," Harry said, shaking his head. "Bloody brilliant."

When Harry and Hermione left, Fred and Pansy remained in the bathroom for a few moments.

"Do you really want to break it off with Katie?" Pansy asked, a slight nastiness to her tone. Fred looked at her. Finally, he smiled.

"Of course," he said, brushing her cheek. "I want to be with you."


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter Eight**

"What!"

Fred winced at the ear-shattering shriek of Katie Bell. She stood over him, her face red with anger, and Fred sat on a chair, hanging his head, his hands held together tightly. Hermione stood close by, arms crossed, and a few others glanced over at the sudden outburst, but a look from Katie quickly turned them away.

"A little loud, Katie," Fred said. Katie slapped him across the face, a loud _Smack!_ sounding throughout the common room. Fred held a hand up to his face.

"I deserved that."

"Yes, you did!" Katie yelled. "How long?"

Fred thought about it. "Not very long. Maybe a couple of weeks…"

"A couple of weeks," Katie said through gritted teeth. "Did you fuck her then?"

Fred sighed. "No."

"How can I believe you?"

Fred glanced at Hermione for support but his friend just shrugged.

"We've only kissed. I swear."

Katie's eyes welled up with tears. "So did you like me at all then?"

"Yes," Fred lied. Katie sat down on a nearby chair and began to bawl into her hands. Hermione quickly rushed over and put an arm around her.

"It's okay, Katie," she whispered. "Calm down now."

Fred stood up. He felt terrible. He had, after all, been Katie's first, and he had never wanted to hurt her this way.

"Look at it this way," Hermione said, leaving her post of comforter when another one of Katie's friends came to help. "That's not as bad as what Pansy would get if Malfoy found out."

Katie lifted her head from her hands, red and blotchy.

"Oh, don't think that Pansy is going to get away with this," she growled, standing up and walking over to Fred. "Draco will find out. I'll make sure of it."

"Katie, please don't," Fred said. "Draco will hurt her."

Katie laughed in his face.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked. "I don't owe that little cunt any favors."

"Well, it might not even matter," Hermione said. "They're broken up anyway."

Katie smiled. "They weren't when it first started."

She walked off with her friends, Fred and Hermione staring after her.

"I have to tell her," Fred said, scrambling over to the door so he could go up to the Owlery, but Hermione grabbed his arm.

"Let this be, Fred," Hermione said.

"But Draco will go mad!"

"So let him go mad!" Hermione said impatiently. "There's nothing you can do. He'll find out eventually anyway, the way gossip spreads around here."

Fred lowered his hand, frowning. "I should warn her."

Hermione shook her head. "Don't. Just let things work themselves out."

Fred looked unconvinced.

"Trust me on this," Hermione said. Fred walked back to a couch and sat down.

"This is going to be horrible," he muttered.

Hermione sat down beside him and rubbed his back.

"I know."

---

Pansy didn't want to sit with the Slytherins the next morning, and it was a good thing she didn't—she didn't notice the way Draco was glaring at her, and when she sat beside Fred at the Gryffindor table, it didn't go unnoticed. She could almost hear the murmurs. Katie smiled wickedly at Pansy because she, unlike the pretty brunette, noticed the way Draco was killing the new couple with his eyes—she had, after all, told Draco about the situation just this morning.

"You're acting risky," Fred said nervously, making room for Pansy. The others scooted away so they sat at the end by themselves.

"I'm sorry," Pansy said. "I know you wanted to keep this private, but—"

"It's okay," Fred said. "It's really no use anymore. People will get used to it." He passed her a biscuit.

"No thanks," Pansy said, crossing her arms. "I'm not hungry."

About forty-five minutes later, students were dismissed from the Great Hall, but no one really went anywhere. They were too distracted by Draco, who had stood up suddenly and strutted over to the Gryffindor table where Pansy and Fred were sitting. Pansy stood up and glared up at Draco.

"So it's true then," he sneered. "Parkinson and Weasley."

"Don't call me that," Pansy snapped. Draco laughed darkly.

"I can call you whatever I bloody want to. Cheater. Hussy. Slut. Just to name a few."

Fred stood up at this and the hall broke out in murmurs.

"Shut your mouth," he said to Draco.

"I could ask Pansy to do the same thing," Draco said. Fred crossed his arms, his angry gaze never wavering.

"I guess I can't say I'm surprised, Weasley," Draco continued. "I hear you like virgins. Sorry that Pansy's not one—I've taken care of that for you."

Pansy slapped Draco across the face, but it were her own cheeks that were burning with embarrassment.

"What's going on, here?"

Snape appeared at the trio's side and Pansy glared at him.

"Nothing. Draco's just exploiting my sex life," Pansy growled. Snape held up a hand.

"I find the sexual activities of my students quite disturbing Miss Parkinson, so please, relieve my distress and don't mention that again." He turned to the rest of students. "Go to your classrooms, _now_."

Everyone began to stand up; Fred put his arm around Pansy to lead her away, but Draco grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him.

"Draco, let go of me!" Pansy yelled. Everyone stopped moving again to glance back at the commotion—including Snape.

Pansy got out of Draco's grip and backed up toward Fred again, but Draco just came after her.

"Leave her alone, Malfoy," Fred said, stepping in front of her.

Malfoy blinked, his eyes wet now—he didn't try to stifle any tears, however. He seemed to have lost any sense of inhibition.

"So it's him you want then," Draco said, ignoring Fred and looking straight at Pansy. "You love him."

Pansy opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.

"I love you, Pansy," Draco whispered.

"W-what?" Pansy asked. Fred reached back to hold Pansy's hand, but she didn't move.

"I love you," Draco said.

"Shut up, Malfoy—"

But Fred was cut off by Draco's fist in his nose.

"Malfoy!" Snape snapped. Blood gushed from Fred's nose and he backed away—relenting enough to allow Draco room to move up to Pansy.

"I love you Pansy," Draco repeated. Fred wiped his nose and pushed Draco, but Snape grabbed Draco's arms before he could retort and McGonogall had strutted up angrily to grab Fred's arm.

"You missed your chance," Fred growled. He looked over at Pansy, but she was staring at Draco, not him.

Snape and McGonogall began to drag the two boys away, Draco staring back at Pansy with big, sad eyes. He was almost out the door when Snape let him go and let him walk on his own, and he heard someone say:

"I love you too, Draco."

He stopped walking and both he and Snape stood staring at Pansy. Pansy crossed her arms and Snape rolled her eyes as Draco walked over to her. They stared at each other for a moment before Pansy reared back and punched Draco square in the jaw. Draco held his mouth in his hands, blood leaking through his fingers.

"Miss Parkinson!" Snape roared, but Pansy ignored him. Draco spit the blood on the floor.

"Bitch," he sneered.

"Git," Pansy growled.

Pansy's eyes sparkled, her face angrier than Draco had ever seen, and he waited only a moment before grabbing her around the waist and forcefully pulling her into a bloody kiss.


End file.
